This week went very well. The CSU long run was perhaps the most encouraging run of the past few months. After running over to Tom and Kristi's, the group headed out towards the Minuteman Bike Path. Kevin and I weren't going too quickly, but at around 7:30/mile, for some reason, we were quickly separated from the group. We held a conversation the entire time, and the miles continued to click by. After hitting our turnaround point, and crossing a few intersections, we had some unencumbered running for the remainder of the run. At one point, I felt the buzz on my watch and took a quick look to notice we had just clicked off a 6:3x mile. Neither Kevin or I were having any issues with the pace, and, in fact, we were still having a conversation. By the time we had finished, our final 8 miles averaged ~6:45/mile. The pace itself is fine, but the most encouraging aspect is that we let those miles come to us as opposed to pressing the issue...if that makes any sense. Anyways, I finished with 21 miles on the day, and those final eight are a good sign for when I start to get into specific marathon training.
The stuff:
17-Jan
Long Run
2:33:26
21.05
AM: CSU long run. 21 miles averaging 7:18/mile with the last
8+ Kevin and I were cruising in the 6:40s without thinking about. Our conversation wasn't even
interupted…this is certainly an encouraging sign.
Off
0:00:00
0
PM: Some light stretching
throughout the day, then dinner with friends.
18-Jan
Easy
1:02:01
8.4
AM: 8+ at around 7:30. A little faster than normal just to stay
warm.
Moderate
0:37:13
5.03
PM: 5+ at 7:24/mile. There is no such thing as easy mileage when
running in the perpetual head winds of the Charles on a 10 degree night.
19-Jan
Easy
0:54:42
7.05
AM: 7+ commute to work at
7:46/mile.
BU Track
1:57:25
14.95
PM: ~10m total before
track. 1000x2/1000/200/800/400x3. First two 1k at 5k pace, next k 800 at 3k
pace with a 200m kick, 400m rest after
that, then 200 smooth, 800 at 5k, 400s at mile pace. Workout went really well.
20-Jan
Easy
0:37:32
4.75
AM: Monthly meeting at work, so
up an hour earlier. Only 6 hours or so
of sleep though, and I felt drained.
Hung around a bit longer and only got in 4.75 miles on my run in.
Easy
0:47:54
6.2
PM: Commute home at 7:45/mile. A
few strides to finish.
21-Jan
Easy
0:54:06
7.06
AM: Commute to work at 7:40/mile
Workout
1:27:41
12.14
PM: Commute to Harvard
track. Met up with Terry and did
5x1000 at around HM pace.
22-Jan
Easy
0:42:09
5.47
AM: Shorter commute at
7/40/mile. Left shin sore.
Easy
0:40:06
5.2
PM: Shorter commute home at
7:43/mile. A few strides to finish.
23-Jan
Workout
0:32:19
4.36
AM: Ran to TJs, then around
Fresh Pond. Averaged 7:25/mile.
Easy
0:00:00
0
Dinner with the Appledorn's and
tried to take it easy.
The weather has finally turned cold, and it sucks. The week started with some heavy rains for the CSU long run - nothing like two and a half hours in the rain. At least it was ~40-50 degrees though. Still, I was chilled to the bone afterward and decided to stop at 19 instead of continuing for that one extra mile.
The mild temps were quickly gone, and by Wednesday I was running on patches of ice. The joys of winter in New England...
Here is running:
10-Jan
Long Run
2:26:02
19.01
Long run from David &
Amory's. 19m in the rain. A good day to have a group.
Off
0:00:00
0
Did some stretching and a decent
amount of pushups, situps, etc.
11-Jan
Easy
0:52:04
7.05
AM: Morning commute averaging
7:23/mile.
BU Track
1:55:04
15.14
PM: Commute home + run to BU for
11+, then workout. 800x3/(400x4)x2, 8s
at 5k pace 4s at mile pace. 60s rest
between the 4s within each set. Ran
2x100 in spikes as well.
12-Jan
Easy
1:04:02
8.22
AM: Commute at 7:47/mile. Dropped off the Subaru at the mechanic
before work and had a little time to tack on a bit. Legs aren't quite as sore as expected.
Easy
0:49:23
6.2
PM: Commute home at 8/mile. Felt pretty tired.
13-Jan
Easy
0:56:16
7.05
AM: Commute at 8/mile. Cold, icy, and a crazy headwind.
Easy
0:47:40
6.18
PM: Ran to pick up Subaru, 6+ at
7:43/mile.
14-Jan
Easy
0:54:44
7.05
AM: Commute at 7:46/mile. Really uncomfortable run, started to cough
to the point of almost puking. Just
some nastiness, not sick.
Longer Tempo w/Appleton Hills
Included
0:55:56
8.45
PM: Commute home was my
workout. Ran at a quicker pace of
6:37/mile, and included three up and down hills on Appleton. Most of this was done with a backpack, and
all of it in my heavy trainers. A
solid evening before the Institute for Inclusive Security Gala - fun stuff.
15-Jan
Easy
0:53:06
7.05
AM: Commute along the Charles as
usual. Felt pretty good and averaged
~7:32/mile.
Easy
0:46:32
6.2
PM: Commute home easy at
7:30/mile.
16-Jan
Fresh Pond 1-Lap
4.07
AM: Limited warm up in really
crappy weather. Won the Fresh Pond
1-lapper in a relaxed ~14:30. At some
point I'd like to extend this to 3 laps, but not today. Today I just wanted to get in a couple
quicker miles then recover.
This week was pretty standard training. A long run, intervals, and two tempo runs. Without any important races on the immediate horizon, I think that this is going to become pretty standard. Basically the 'putting in the work' phase of marathon training.
That being said, everything went well this week. The long run was on the marathon course for portions as well as hitting some other respectable hills, and I finished up with four miles at probably 6:50/mile. Nothing special, but it's a good sign that I can comfortably increase the pace at the end of an 18 miler. Interval work at BU was switched to Monday due to a high school track meet, and I was a little sore to get started, but warmed up nicely. The first tempo was on Thursday night and was done along the Charles with a backpack and no headlamp, so it was a bit slower. Because it was on the slower side, I didn't feel much of an effect the following day. So then on Saturday at 9:50, I decided to get in a decent effort at Fresh Pond...Nothing like putting my coffee down and rushing across the street for a race scheduled to start in 5 minutes. In any case, it went well enough, and I really need to start planning on doing that every weekend.
Anyways, here it is:
3-Jan
Long Run
2:12:37
18.05
Long run in Newton. Averaged about 7:20 for the run, with the
last 4 miles faster.
Off
0:00:00
0
Off
4-Jan
Easy
0:53:00
7.05
AM: Morning commute at 7:30ish. Cold!
BU Track
2:02:03
14.22
PM: 9m home then to the
track.
800/(800/600/400/300/200)x2.
8's and 6's at 5k pace, 400 on down at mile pace. 200 easy recovery. Workout went well. Felt really comfortable clicking off 40s
for the 5k stuff. Finished up with
2x100 in spikes.
5-Jan
Easy
0:54:57
7.05
AM: Morning commute at 7:50ish.
Easy
1:03:55
8.14
PM: Ran into Trooper Mike (some
random guy) and jogged with him for a few miles to pass the time. 8+
averaging 7:50/mile.
6-Jan
Easy
0:53:44
7.05
AM: Morning commute averaging
7:37/mile.
Moderate
0:54:24
7.13
PM: Commute home plus 4 Poplar
strides. Averaged 7:38/mile.
7-Jan
Easy
0:53:11
7.05
AM: Morning commute averaging
7:33/mile.
Workout
0:49:52
7.16
PM: 1m moderate, 5m averaging
6:30/mile. Finished up with 1m
easy
8-Jan
Easy
0:54:31
7.05
AM: Morning commute averaging
7:45/mile.
Easy
0:56:14
7
PM: Commute home plus 4 short
hill sprints and 2 Poplar Strides.
9-Jan
Workout
0:35:00
5.72
Fresh Pond 2-lapper in
28:44. Legs felt decent even with only
a 4min 'warm up.' Lungs still feel a
little weird though.
Off
0:00:00
0
Off. Played music with the Fanning's for the
first time in years!
January 2nd was the third and final installment of the BU mini meets, and with vacation plans switched around, I was able to show up with less miles in my legs than usual (though perhaps still a tad sleep deprived from a NYEve wedding). I woke up feeling fresh with none of the aches and pains that have accompanied my higher mileage of the past few months. My left knee felt a little loose, thanks to an unleashed dog at Fresh Pond the day before, but it was nothing serious and I was eager to try my first BU double. I enjoyed my typical cup of coffee and granola, and told Elizabeth I'd see her in a few hours.
After a nice 3m+ run over to BU, I walked in only to find a huge registration line stretched around the corridor. I don't think people have a New Year's resolution of running more indoor track, so I was left slack jawed and wondering if I would be able to register for the 3k in time. Luckily, a separate line was created for 3k runners, and I signed up within 5 minutes. I put my things down in the stands, and continued to jog around the outside of the track for a bit to stay loose, before switching into flats. I ended up in heat 4, so that meant I had ~30 minutes to continue my warm up and do some drills.
I toed the line with 19 other runners, and I had a lot of pre-race nerves going on. This being my first 3k race, I wasn't sure what to expect, but most of these indoor races start off with someone going out way too fast - so once the gun went off I happily took up the last place spot. I missed the first 200 split, but ended up at around 1:18 or 1:19 through the first 400, and that felt very comfortable. Still, I I had 2600 to go, so I was in no rush to press the issue.
I focused on staying relaxed and out of trouble, and remained in last place through 1600 at about 5:11ish. When I passed the clock, I wasn't doing math so much as taking inventory of how I felt with 1400 to go. And I felt fine. I noticed some large gaps, and started to slowly tighten the screws. I was trying to be as efficient as possible, and I was passing in groups of two and four on the straights throughout the remaining laps. With 600 to go, I still felt completely in control and pressed a bit harder for the next 300, and finally with 300 to go I began a long acceleration. I think I passed a pack of four during this stretch, but didn't have enough real estate for the next group of two or three guys and I ended up in 8th place with a time of 9:36:08 establishing a new PR that I would consider improvable but not soft. I was very happy with this result.
I had plenty of time before I raced the mile, so I quickly got my watch ready to give Terry his splits as he ran the 5th section of the 3k. As one would expect, Terry was like a metronome with every split between 40.3s and 41.6s except his final 200, which he closed with a 37.11 to finish a mere .37s behind Dave Dunham - good for 3rd place.
After probably two hours of staying loose/warming up with Kevin and Neil, the 10th of 20 heats was finally about to start. This would be the first time that Kevin and I were able to get into the same heat. As they were getting the clock ready, we had a good old fashioned stare down that went something like this....
Shortly after the gun went off, I took a quick look at my watch and used the same strategy I had in the 3k and went straight to the back. I still came through the quarter in about 1:11 even in last place. With everyone in our heat seeded around 4:55 give or take, I again wasn't about to press the issue and I kept the stride relaxed.
I was still in last place when I passed the half mile mark in 2:25, and finally passed someone ~900 meters in. Both Kevin and I did a fantastic job (in my opinion) of staying out of trouble and not getting crazy over the first half of the race. This was evidenced by us steadily moving up during the second half of the race. But I think Kevin did a slightly better job than I did. I avoided passing on the curves just a little bit too much, and this resulted in some slower middle laps. Nonetheless, I found myself in good position for the most part, and once again with 300 to go, I began to accelerate.
With 200 to go, I lengthened my stride and started to make up some ground on a Somerville Road Runner who had maybe 10 meters on me. On the back stretch, I accelerated just a bit more to get him within ~5 meters, and then with maybe 50 meters or so to go, I gave it my final sprint home. I ended up just behind Titus Mutinda (GBTC) and another runner for 3rd place in our heat. After watching the video, I'm actually a little disappointed in myself that I didn't go for broke trying to win the heat. If I had started to hammer it with 100-125 meters left I think I would've had a very good shot, but all in all I am very happy with a new PR of roughly 4:48.27.
The standard holiday travelling resulted in a pretty big reduction in mileage, but on the plus side I ended up running a bit more quality and getting some welcomed recovery as well.
The pace of my Sunday long run was out of the blue, but the impromptu harder running looks to be an excellent sign as my training focus transitions from the mile to the marathon. I started off with a couple ~7:30 miles, then began clicking off the miles at around a 6:45 pace. Miles 12 through 15 were with Eli and Raleigh, and they were much slower. I continued on for the final three miles averaging ~6:30/mile. Overall I had done 18+ with 14 miles total at a pretty quick clip. Finishing the last three a bit faster is especially encouraging.
On Saturday I ran a 3k/mile double at the 3rd BU Mini Meet, and that went very well (write up to come). Though the timing malfunctioned for the mile, I'm confident that I ran a PR by at least one second. And since I've never raced a 3k before, that is another PR in the books to start 2016...I'll take it! The two races were separated by about an hour and a half to two hours, and I did a lot of laps to stay warm and loose. I'm not sure if I would consider the day a "special block," but it was certainly a lot of running and quite taxing as well. Including warming up, cooling down, etc, I ran over 15 miles for the day.
So, while this week of mileage is lower, I consider this a great start to 2016.
The stuff:
27-Dec
Long Run
2:11:00
18.08
Fast pace averaging about
6:45/mile for 11 miles, then a slow 4 with Raleigh and Eli, and finished up
fast again around 6:30.
28-Dec
Easy/Moderate
0:42:46
5.5
AM: 5.5 at 7:45.
PM: Vacation.
29-Dec
Easy/Speed
0:34:56
4.12
AM: Driving.
PM: 4+ at 8:30. All on ice. Was hoping to go for 8, but this
sucked. Did a couple back and forth hill repeats on Appleton though.
30-Dec
Track/Easy
1:04:35
8.62
AM: Ran to Harvard for another
1200 time trial. 3:41.23 is better
than two weeks ago, but still a bit slow.
Ran 4x200 as well, felt comfortable and smooth. Still having breathing issues.
31-Dec
Easy
0:42:37
6.1
AM: Ran decently quick
(7min/mile) for a few laps around Fresh Pond before the drive to the South
Shore.
PM: Driving.
1-Jan
Easy/Easy
0:37:58
5.1
AM: Driving again.
PM: A pretty easy 5 around Fresh Pond.
Averaged around 7:30per. Really
tired from being up way too late.
2-Jan
BU Mini Meet
2:56:37
15.5
BU Mini Meet Double. 3k in 9:36 and the mile in 4:48.40. Never ran a 3k before and very pleased with
the result. The mile was also a PR. Great day of running.
